Coronavirus Alert

The Belin-Blank Center is committed to maintaining the safety and well-being of all our visitors and we are monitoring the COVID-19 situation. We will follow the University of Iowa's guidance and the CDC's recommendations as the situation changes. For information about a specific event or program, please check our Emergency Alerts page for further updates.

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

The Belin-Blank Center is proud to serve as the Iowa and Midwest Region-at-Large Affiliate for the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program. As Affiliate for these two regions, we accept art and writing submissions, judge those submissions, hold an awards ceremony recognizing regional winners, and provide summer programming for talented young artists and writers.

About the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards program is the nation’s longest-running, largest, most prestigious recognition program for creative teens. Over the past 95 years, the Awards have recognized and encouraged artists and writers such as Sylvia Plath, Andy Warhol, Truman Capote, Robert Redford, Tom Otterness, and Zac Posen, among countless others.

Photos

How to Apply

Submit Your Work

Every year, we accept and judge submissions to the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards from Iowa and the Midwest Region-at-Large.

To submit your work, you will first need to visit the national Scholastic Art & Writing Awards website. There, you will find important dates and instructions for signing up to participate in the competition.

While you wait for your work to be judged, be sure to check our art and writing summer programs! Priority is given to students to participate in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

Winning an Award

Beginning in late January, you can see the award winners and print out your certificate if you won. Plus, winners will be invited to be honored at the Belin-Blank Center Scholastic Celebration!

After You Win

Students who earn Honorable Mention, Silver, or Gold Key Awards in either Art or Writing in the Iowa or Midwest Regions are invited to "The Belin-Blank Center Presents: A Scholastic Celebration in Three Acts". The Celebration also recognizes the teachers who are listed on the submission forms of student pieces. In all, over 1000 students and almost 500 teachers are invited to attend the event, which takes place Saturday, March 7, 2020, in the University of Iowa's Memorial Union in Iowa City, Iowa. Invitations are typically sent in late January, and an adaptable press release is available.

Gold Key works automatically advance to national judging. National Awards will be announced on March 16, 2020 at artandwriting.org.

Past Award Winners

Want More Art & Writing?

Apply to be among 75 of the finest young artists and writers who spend three weeks working with world-class faculty on one of the premiere arts campuses in the US. Priority will be given to students who participate in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.